Adam Brickley's ConservaGlobe

Right wing commentary on world politics from a man on a mission to prove that Conservatism transcends national boundaries.
Thoughtful comments from people of all political persuasions are welcome and encouraged.
Contact the blogger at elephantman.conservaglobe@gmail.com.

Friday, November 14, 2008

Ruby Dhalla: The Next Barack Obama?

I normally don’t go around giving advice to people I disagree with, let alone people in foreign countries who I disagree with. Yet, in this particular case I just can’t resist. While I’ve been busy with the Draft Palin movement lately, I’ve also been entranced by this year’s election in Canada. Of course, I was thrilled at the re-election of Conservative Party Prime Minister Stephen Harper. However, I was even more intrigued by the total collapse of the once-dominant Liberal Party of Canada.

Once considered Canada’s “natural governing party” the Liberals imploded in the October 15th general election - they suffered their worst defeat in history in terms of popular vote, won only 77 out of 308 seat in Parliament. Not surprisingly, party leader Stephane Dion gave up his position, making him the first Liberal leader in over a century to never occupy the Prime Minister’s office. His resignation triggers a race for the party leadership, roughly equivalent to presidential primaries here in the States, to be decided at a convention next May.Now, here’s why I’m telling you all this: I may be a conservative, but I am not a political sadist. the Liberals seem intent on nailing their own coffin shut by selecting a leader who will divide their party, suffer another crushing defeat to the Conservatives, and potentially leave an opening for the socialist New Democratic Party (NDP) to make huge gains (something that would be REALLY scary). However, there is also a profound opportunity available to them.

Three members of Parliament have already entered the race: Former Harvard professor Michael Ignatieff, Former Premier of Ontario Bob Rae (a recent defector from the NDP), and rising star Dominic LeBlanc. We’ll get to the one candidate who hasn’t decided yet in a minute. Ignatieff and Rae almost tore the party apart in the 2006 leadership race, their camps became so polarized that the now -disgraced Stephane Dion (who entered the convention in fourth place) was able to run up the middle by picking up the support of all the minor candidates as they were eliminated (the delegates vote, the last-place candidate is eliminated, they vote again..simple process). It is likely that the same thing will happen this time, making it impossible for the party to unify after the election (Rae’s people couldn’t follow Ignatieff and vice-versa). LeBlanc has the benefit of being young (40) and has the backing of a number of important people, but I just don’t see him having enough “oomph” to match either of the two frontrunners, and I think he would do poorly in a national election . All three are horrible choices, and most of the potential minor candidates have bowed out in an attempt to avoid the type of multi-candidate circus that brought Dion to power. So, the Liberals are dead, right? Wrong. There is one candidate still deciding whether to enter, and she should scare the living daylights out of our beloved Prime Minister Harper and his Conservatives. Meet Dr. Ruby Dhalla.

At only 34 years of age, Dhalla is a political prodigy. She extremely well spoken, SCARY smart, and has already built a career on the idea of getting young people more involved in politics (remind you of a certain President-elect?). In addition to being by far the youngest leadership hopeful in party history, the small number of candidates would make her both the only woman and the only minority in the race. As I see it, she is looking at her perfect storm. For one, Ignatieff and Rae will likely repeat their 2006 performance and polarize the party, leaving a massive opening for a spoiler to run up the middle. Dominic LeBlanc wants that hole, but he doesn’t have enough gas to get all the way through it (and his French name will draw lots of Dion comparisons). Dhalla, on the other hand, could gain a lot of steam by monopolizing the votes of youth, women, her fellow Indian-Canadians, and possibly other ethnic minorities. With the right strategy, she could quickly elbow LeBlanc out of third place and start peeling votes from both Michael Ignatieff and Bob Rae (who are too focused on each other to see her coming up behind them). At the very least, she would enter the convention in a solid third place, and could probably gain LeBlanc’s endorsement after he is eliminated. This is exactly how Stphane Dion got into the final in 2006. By securing the backing of fourth-place candidate Gerard Kennedy, Dion catapulted past the second-place Rae and into a final showdown with Ignatieff.I realize that I’m neither Liberal nor Canadian…but after spending a year and a half promoting Sarah Palin, I’d like to think that I know a thing or two about candidate scouting. The answer to all of the Liberals’ problems is staring them right in the face, and it’s killing me that they don’t seem to realize it. Instead, they are marching like lemmings into a useless Rae vs. Ignatieff grudge match, thereby driving themselves further into oblivion. I may be a conservative American, but I feel like I’m watching a totally avoidable train wreck. So, out of sheer good will, I feel compelled to point them in the right direction. So, for whatever its worth, I tried to stop speeding train before it crashed.

If Ruby Dhalla is smart, she will seize the day and become the first person to successfully replicate the Obama movement. In doing so, she can bring the Liberals back from the brink and shatter almost every glass ceiling in the book by simultaneously becoming the first woman, first minority, and youngest person ever elected Prime Minister. Or, her party could turn to one of the two old guys who are currently seen as the natural heirs to the position…which sounds like the smarter option to you?

REACTIVATING TONIGHT!

This blog has been dormant for a VERY long time while I have been busy promoting Sarah Palin, but with the presidential race over, I'm ready to jump back into international affairs. Stay tuned for a new column tonight on the person who I think could be "The Next Barack Obama"... you will be especially interested if you happen to be Canadian.

Sunday, July 01, 2007

Are Terrorists Targeting Gordon Brown?

If you happen to live in a cave, then you need to know that four BIG news stories have taken place in Britain in the last week: Tony Blair handed the Prime Ministership to Gordon Brown on Wednesday, two terrorist-linked car bombs were found in London Friday, a terrorist drove a flaming car into the Glagow airport Saturday, and the Spice Girls got back together on Thursday.

Omitting the Spice Girls, I would make the case that all of those events are connected. I find it hard to believe that the Islamonazis behind the two bomb attempts did not deliberately launch their attacks in the first week of Brown's premiership. A similar strategy was used in the 4/11 bombings in Spain, which were timed to coincide with that country's general elections and resulted in victory for anti-American Prime Minister Jose Luis Zapatero - who then pulled all Spanish troops out of Iraq. Mr. Brown, who is less cozy with the US than his predecessor, did not need an election to take power, but the idea is the same: Bomb the country just as a new leftist leader takes power and spook him into pulling out of the Global War on Terror.

Maybe this is all a coincidence; but as this tactic has been used by Al Qaeda before, I would bet good money that it is not. The world should watch Gordon Brown very closely as he reacts to these attacks, because my guess is that the jihadis will base their future strategy on his actions. If they succeed in spooking the new prime minister, then the U.S. should be prepared for attempted attacks immediately before or after the 2008 election (before if the anti-war party is trailing in the polls).

So, congratulations Mr. Brown - the terrorists have just placed the future of Western civilization in your hands....Please don't screw it up.

Monday, June 25, 2007

We Support You, Mates!

Our US troops in Iraq deserve all the support they can get...but this video reminded me that we're not alone over there. "Unsung Heroes" is probably the best title for this video, especially those of us here in America. We need to remember ALL of the brave souls fighting for freedom in Iraq and Afghanistan, whether they hail from America, Britain, or any far corner of the globe.

Thats why I'm posting this tribute to one of America's greatest allies in the fight against terrot.....THE AUSSIES. To all of the Australian men and women serving in the Middle East and elsewhere - Keep up the good work, mates; we support you, and we will not forget your sacrifice.

Monday, May 07, 2007

Thoughts on Nicholas Sarkozy

Well, if you read my post yesterday, you know that I am ecstatic about the election of "pro-American conservative" Nicholas Sarkozy as President of France - and most conservatives share my joy. But not much has been said about "Sarko" other than that he is a "pro-American conservative". So, who exactly is this guy, anyway?

For starters, let's make sure that you're pronouncing his name right (most of us Yanks aren't). If you watched French coverage of the election, you would have noted that his surname is pronouncedSAR-kuh-zee, not sar-KOH-zee. His first name is pronounced NEE-koh-lah.

As far as policy is concerned, he's amazingly good in comparison to previous French presidents, especially on economics, where he wants to take a more "Anglo-American" approach. He is also openly friendly with the Bush administration. In fact, in his victory speech, he said, "I want to issue an appeal to our American friends, to tell them that they can count on our friendship...I want to tell them that France will always be by their side when they need it."

That said, he is not exactly George Bush with a French accent. For one, he wants a timetable for American withdrawal from Iraq. He also said in the above mentioned victory speech that, "the United States has a duty not to put obstacles in the way of the fight against global warming, but on the contrary to take the lead in this fight." He is a staunch advocate of the European Union (which some conservatives dislike), and he wants to form a "Mediterranean Union" for trade between Europe and Africa . Though, I doubt he wants to take that idea to the extreme to which the EU has progressed: "What was done for the union of Europe 60 years ago, we are going to do today for the union of the Mediterranean."

So, I say Nicholas Sarkozy is about the best thing to come out of France since french fries, and you can expect him to have a very warm relationship with Washington. Furthermore, his economic plans will do a world of good for the faltering French economy. Still, you should be prepared for him to say a few things that might not be what the US wants to hear - especially concerning global warming.

What is going to be very interesting is to see how Euro-American relation evolve in the next few months. As Sarkozy takes the reigns in France, Tony Blair is preparing to hand Britain off to his top lieutenant, Gordon Brown. Brown is to Blair's left and, while not exactly hostile, is not as friendly to his allies across the pond as his predecessor was. It is possible that Sarkozy's France could become America's #1 ally in Europe, while the Brown's UK becomes a less reliable partner. Now THAT would make for an interesting sea-change in international affairs!

To see all of the action surrounding Sarkozy's victory, check out Patrick Ruffini's "Sarkovideowall", a massive wall of TV clips showing everything from jubilant Sarko supporters, to news reports, to videos of the insane anti-Sarko mobs that have torched several hundred cars in the streets of France....Note: I'm beginning to note a world trend indicating that conservatives tend to be graceful losers, while Socialists tend to turn violent when they don't win elections.

Vive Sarkozy! Vive la France!

Monday, April 23, 2007

In Memory: Boris Yeltsin

Boris Nikolayevich Yeltsin

First President of the Russian Federation

1931-2007

Say what you will about what happened to the Russian Economy under Yeltsin, I still say that the world owes him a debt of gratitude. He was one of the primary forces in bringing down the evil empire and starting Russia down the road to a future a freedom an prosperity. I know it is generally said that Reagan, Thatcher, and Pope John Paul II won the cold war, but that is not entirely true. In a large measure, it was the Russian people who gave the free world victory over the forces of Communism - with Boris Yeltsin as their leader.

So, rest in peace, President Yeltsin, and thank you for all of the good you did...not just for Russia, but for the world.

Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Update

Hey everyone, I'm back from my trip to Canada and back in the blogosphere. This blog will continue to exist, especially considering the pivotal international elections which will be taking place in the next few months. France will head to the polls on April 22 to begin the process of electing a successor to Jacques Chirac, and the leading candidate at the moment is - get this - a rabidly pro-American conservative named Nicholas Sarkozy. It also appears that Canada's conservative minority government will crumble by the end of this month, triggering new elections. Things up North are very close, and it's anyone's guess whether Prime Minister Stephen Harper will be able to hold off newly-minted Liberal Party leader Stephane Dion in the coming conflagration. Oh, and Tony Blair plans on stepping down in May last time I checked.

So, I have decided that this blog definitely needs to remain up and running. That said, I may not be able to post as often, as I have taken up a new blogging project regarding the 2008 election here in the USA. Click here to link to my new blog. I know the idea presented by this new site may seem a little outlandish to some, but trust me...I have done my homework and believe in what I am saying.

It's good to be back, and I hope you are all strapped in for a wild ride in the world of international politics over the next few months.